Method and machine for flavoring leaf tobacco



Nov. 16,1926. 1, 07,135

. C. L. ROBERTS METHOD AND MACHINE FOR FLAVORING LEAF TOBACCO Filed June11. 1925 INVENTOR Patented Nov. 16, 1926. t 9

: UNITED 1s cHAaLEs L. ROBERT ,o'F f LOUrsVILLE, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNQRTOTHEIAVMERICAN, TOBACCO COMP Y. or NEW YORK, N.VY., A CORPORATION or NEWJERSEY.

METHOD ANnM AcHINEroa FLAVORING LEAF Toia'Aoco.

. Application filed June 11, was. Serial No, 36,299.]

' This invention is an improvement inmethads and machines for flavoringleaf tobacco, and fmore particularly in methods and machines forflavoring the finer particles of the leaf and the tobacco dustproducedduring the handling of the leaf.

tobacco is subjected in this conversionfrom the raw to the finishedproduct, the leaves 7 are flavored, usually by 'olipping'into a suit-fable flavoring liquid, draining, and compressing to ex'pressthe excessliquid: Y

' Prior to theflavoring of the tobacco the 7 large woody portion of thestem is removed.

In the operation a relatively large quantity of tobacco dust, andfragments of a size too Small to'be successfully flavored by theusualmethods are produced. These particles and thedust are tobacco of thesame character and grade as the larger pieces, and are entire lysuitable for use in the'making-of the products fonwhich the largerportions are used'a H 1 V Inthe usual'method' of flavoring, the.to

7- bacco leaves are passed through the flavoring liquid, by mechanicalmeans, and they-Jarrive at the expressing mechanism, usually 'apair ofcooperating wringer rollers, in a more or less bunched condition. Therollers ordinarily used are 1 smooth surfaced, and they do not readilygrasp bunched leaves. Unless the feed to the rollers issubstantiallyuniform, they do not function to the best advantage, sofaras a wholly mechanical operation is concerned," andthe mechanicalfeed must be supplemented'by; manual manipulationw ndipped portions,{and agglomerated with the ther handling of the leaf. j Another ob'ectis the provision dipped portion for convenience in the'furof anew andimproved mechanism or I machine for carrying out the "process. 1

Another ob 'ect is the provision of a mechanism so constructed andarranged that the agglomeration of the dry and the dipped particles will"be ,er substantially uniform character-L 1 v Anotherfiobject is theprovision in such a mechanism of a construction of exprees= One" of theprimary objects of the present invention 'is the provision'of a methodby the practice-of which the'smaller portions of the bunched or insegregated relation. H

To the accomplishment :of the'foregoing, 1 V

and such other objects. as may hereinafter v appear, the inventionconsists in the method, In some'of the proceduresto hich;leaf

and in the construction and novel combina- I 'tion .of partsfullydescribed hereinafter,v

illustratedin the accompanying drawings,-

carrying out the 4 In the pres'ent embodiment oftheinvenf t1on,;-theimproved machine for carrying.

out the method, includes a tank 1 for holding the-flavoring liquid,which maybe of any. sultable or desired composition, and the tobacco tobe flavored is fed into the tank at Oneend thereof, lthrough an inclinedchute 2. Only thelarger portions of the leaf, such as the tips,separated in the manner shown and described in my copending applicationSer. 'No. 36,298, of even date herewith, are fed throughthe; chu-te'2. 1s The leaves are submerged in the liquid, and are driven therethrough,by means of a dipping dru1n3,on. -;a shaft 4;, which isjourrnaledtransversely ofthe tank, near the disi chargeiend of the chutej2,The drum has on its periphery longitudinally extending plates .or' vanes5,-which impart movementto the liquid ina directionawayfromthe chute 2,

andiwhich engageythe leaves that may fioat son the liquid, andsubmergesthem therein.

2 .Thus; the drum provides fora veryinti mate mixt'ureofthe leaves andthe flavoring" liquid,.so that every part of each leaf particleistouched with-the liquid After leav-L ing thedrum, the leaves passbeneath' the lower end of an elevator, which', re1noves them from thetank, carrymgthem over a 'drainageplate, I

WThe carrieris composedof endless chains- '6, .7 supported by sprocket.wheels 7' on shafts 8and9 ouriila le d transversely of trough, theshaft. T. lasing su ported the trough,

Lil

there is an interlockingengagement between till the lower runs thereofmove upwardly,

' tacting with said surface.

delivers: onto leaf 1particles,

which are produced in'thehandl'ng of the tobacco,prior-'to-the flavoringthereof, and whicl'iare-showered onto the dipped port-ionsfin adry Iwhile the shaft9 is arranged wellaliove the same, and in rear of theshaft 8. As many I chainsas may be necessary are provided, the chainsbeing inv register, and they are connected by cross bars '10 at suitableintervals.

The cross bars carry tines or prongs 11, a number being provided foreach cross bar, and arranged longitudinally thereof. 'The constructionis such that the tines are swept in. succession through the flavoringliquid, just in rear of the'dip in drum, and the chains are moved insucha direction, that i and rearwardlyffi'om the tank.

A c'lra'ii'i'board or plate 12 is arranged in the rearO-E the carrier,in'inclinedposition, and so pos'itio n'ed that thefree ends of the tineson the lower run of the carrier move close to the surface thereof, butwithout con- I The plate-12 perforate plate as shown, and asthe leavesare moved np"the-sl-oping plate by the tines orpro' ngsfthe' excessliquid escapes, run-. ning down thepl'ate, and throughtheperforations,back into thetank 7 At its rear and upper end, the plate 12has an extension 13,-whioh inclines in the opposite direction to theplate .12. The

-lrained,but still wet leaves pass over the angle between the plates-'12and-13, dropping down over the 'rearface of the' plate 13*into; the"grasp of the expressing mechanism. i p The said mechanism includes apair of rollers 14 and15, arranged with theiraXes parallel,"and withthe. axis of the roller" 14 above and inrear of that of theaxis of theroller 15. Each-ofthese rollers comprises a cylindrical body as shown,having a facing 16 of resilient material, with a high coefIicient-of'friction, as for instance rubber. The rubber facing-iscorrugatedlongitudinally ofeach roller, to'provide alternating groovesand ribs, and the ribs of one roller register withthe grooves ottheother roller, hat in the normal-position ofthe rollers *Just above theroller 14, a Clint/817' is ar', ranged, in inclined position, the chutedelivering to the upper surface of the roller- 14 just in front of'theaxis ithereof. The' chute the dipped and drained large the fineparticles and dust,

condition. This material is deliv'erectin a stream, extendingsubstantially the full length of the'roller 1 1, and

falli'ngiintothe grooves and 'onto the ribs thereof,- is"c arried aroundand delivered upon the dipped tobaccofjustprior to the expression of theexcess liquid therefrom.

' he stream delivered maybe of any'desired thickness, and it will beevident that as the roller 14 turns, the flner particles of dust will beagglomerated with the dipped larger leaf particles bythe pressureo'ftherolls, and will be simultaneouslyflavored, partly by absorption, andpartly by the forcing of theexces's liquid from the dipped toba co intothe dry tobacco.

The compressed or wrung tobacco is delivered by the rollers 14 and 15,onto a drum 18, having longitudinal extending radialplates 19. This drumrotates inthe. same direction as the lower roller, and'as the leafparticles are delivered onto'the' plates thereof, theyoare carried 'over'thedrum, and

dropp'edthro-ugh a chute ZO'intoa suitable i'ec'elver; 3 i v ,The drums,shafts, and rollers aredriven in any suitable manner from a primemovernotshown, andthet obacco; is supplied to the chutes 2 and 17' inanydesir-ed manner. roduct of the improved: machineuis anagglomerationof large and small particles, the

small particles being; compressed" onto; and

into the'larger: particles, 'so that all are.

flavored, and-theproduct is in a convenient.-

shape'forfurther processing. 7 I 7 The arrangement of rollers, having-1ongitu'dinally extending alternating grooves and ribs, insures a-firmgraspof thedi'pp'ed tobacco, re'gardlessof uniformity-in the: feed, thatis the leaves may come in bunches, {OI

in segregatedrelation, withouteffecting-the grasp of :the'rollers invany manner. Furthermore the grooving-of the rollers, provides-pocketsifor receiv ngthe dry lea-f particles, and dust-asthey are showeredtlown'from thechute l7, and! they: function more satisfactory in theagglomeration ofthedry and wet leaf. ()ne. of the rollers14-15; isusually spring support-ed tov yield away from the other. I

l claimz". p @e 1. The nfethod of flavorin g tobacco leaves inf large'and'small fragments, V which ':con-

'sists in dipping the larger fragments ,in::a flavoring solution;draining I said" fragments, showering the finerfragments in a dry condition' onto the drained. fragments, and afterwards squeezingto expressthe excess liquid and toysimultaneouslyiagglornerate v the-dryf-ragments with the dipped fragments. r

2. In the method of: flavoring leaf tobacco by llTlmQISlOHf in; aflavoring liquid, drainnig, and expressing the excess-liquid, the stepwhich consists in sprinkling on thedipped leaf, prior tothe expressing,finetobacca leaf particles and dust. J

3. Inthe method f flavoring leaf tobacco by immersion. in a flavoringliquid, draining,

and, expressing the excess liquid,- the jstep which consists inagglomeratmg wlthfthe.

tobacco during-the expressing masses of smaller particles of tobacco ina dry condition prior to their contact with the drained tobacco.

at. The method of flavoring leaf tobacco which consists innnm'ersing theleaves in a flavoring liquid, dra1n1ng,and working into pressing rollersto which the drain board delivers, and means for 'showering'finer leafparticles in a dry condition upon the dipped leaves, prior to theirrollers. 6. In a machine for flavoring'leat' tobacco, including atobacco tank, a drain board, and a plurality of means to submergeandmove the leaves through the liquid in the tank, and to move them overthedrain board expressing rollers to which the drain board passagebetween the delivers, and means to shower leaf particles and tobaccodust onto theiupper roller at the side adjacent to the drain board. 7 g7; In a machine for flavoring tobacco, a

pair of longitudinally corrugated expressing rollers arranged one abovethe other for expressing the excess liquid, and means for showeringfiner leaf particles and to bacco dustxin a dry state,-onto theclownwardly' moving side of the upper roller. 7

8. In a machine for flavoring tobacco, a I

pair of co -operating corrugated expressing the corrugations of onefitting between the state onto the downwardly moving side of 35 rollersarranged one above'the other with 7 the upper roller and intothecorrugations for the purpose specified.

Signed at Richmond in the county of Henrico and State of Virginia thiseighth

